The seemingly widespread, long term decline in muskrat populations has been puzzling to trappers and wildlife managers for years. Despite less trapping pressure and far lower harvest, muskrat numbers continue to go down. Theories attempting to explain lower rat numbers range from habitat loss, higher populations of predators, disease, and many others. Pennsylvania … [Read more...]
Reintroduced in late 1960s, Fishers Fare Fine in West Virginia
Source: Charleston Gazette-Mail | Pulitzer Prize-winning West Virginia news | Reintroduced in late 1960s, fishers fare fine in WV … [Read more...]
Otter Recovery in West Virginia
Forty years ago, river otters were essentially extinct in West Virginia. Today, they can be found in almost every county of the state. Source: Charleston Gazette-Mail … [Read more...]
North Dakota may join states that allow otter trapping – SFGate
Experts say the otter population is thriving — thanks in part to managed harvests — but animal welfare groups worry the expansion of trapping in the U.S. and Canada in recent decades isn't sustainable. Trappers in North Dakota for years have pressed state wildlife officials to allow otter trapping as the animals have moved into the eastern part of the state from Minnesota, … [Read more...]
Lynx Exclusion Device for Marten and Fisher Trapping – Video
This video shows an example of a Maine- legal (as of 2017) cubby to exclude lynx for Marten and Fisher trapping. … [Read more...]
Fishers: Rare, Recovering and Everywhere in Between
The Fisher (Martes pennati) is a large furbearer in the weasel family found in northern climates across the U.S. and Canada. Fisher populations are common and healthy in many Northeast states, and the species has shown incredible recovery after reintroduction in Pennsylvania: Fisher Resurgence: Once extinct in Pennsylvania forests, a big active predator is on the … [Read more...]
Marten Trapline Update, December 2016
It's been another tough year on the marten line for me. Having limited success but still learning. Picked up a few marten and a few pointers from other marten trappers, even some beginners who have had much better success than I have. A couple feet of snow and another strikeout on a prospect line have beaten me down pretty good, but I am planning for next year. New … [Read more...]
Small Time Marten Line
It isn't always about putting up numbers on the trapline, and Tom Chapin and Dan Hertle are a great example of how much one can enjoy small time trapping. These two old veterans get out on foot during Minnesota's very short and limited trapping season. Most trappers these days drive their traplines, hopping out to check a couple of sets here, a couple there. Chapin and … [Read more...]